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Thursday, February 12, 2015

Rallying for the Little Rock School District; applications sought for advisory board

The state Board of Education meets tonight for a dinner work session at Copper Grill and they'll be greeted by a demonstration from people who want local control returned to the Little Rock School District. Said a notice of the event:

Members of an emerging coalition of parents, teachers, concerned Little Rock residents and students will hold a rally at Third and Cumberland in Little Rock at 5:15 pm to thank State Board of Education members who opposed the takeover of the Little Rock School District and to urge the state board to move quickly to restore local control to the district. The State Board of Education is scheduled to hold a "dinner/work" session at the Copper Grill at 5:30 pm. After the short rally the coalition will gather for a Teach-In at the Willie Hinton Neighborhood Resource Center. Earlier in the week more than 60 Southwest Little Rock residents gathered to discuss the takeover and future plans.

The board voted 5-4 to take over the entire school district, the state's largest, because of low scores on standardized tests in six of the district's 48 schools.

MEANWHILE, the state-run district once known as the Little Rock School District announced today the process to apply and be selected to serve on the 12-member citizens advisory board that will be allowed to give input to state Education Commissioner Tony Wood, who's now in charge of the district and functions as its school board. Representatives and senators who represent the Little Rock School District (an area not contiguous with city boundaries, but much smaller) will choose 7 members from school board zones and1 representative of a "philanthropic organization serving the district." Principals from the six academically distressed schools will meet with Interim Superintendent Dexter Suggs to choose two teachers and two students to serve on the advisory committee. It has no power and, in other situations in the state, wishes of similar committees aren't always followed. The full release follows:

Little Rock School District Civic Advisory Committee

Selection Process

The Little Rock School District values and seeks the input of its stakeholders in determining goals and objectives for the district and will establish a Little Rock School District (LRSD)Civic Advisory Committee to facilitate that process. Each interested parent and community member living within the Little Rock School District boundaries and any philanthropic organization representative serving the Little Rock School District may submit an online application to serve on the LRSD Civic Advisory Committee on or before noon, Friday, February 20, 2015. Click on this link to access the application: LRSD Civic Advisory Committee.

A committee comprised of elected representatives and senators from the Little Rock School District boundaries will be requested to select (7) regional representatives consisting of parents and community members living in the seven (7) current school zones. The nominees chosen to serve on the LRSD Civic Advisory Committee must reflect the Little Rock community. In addition, the committee of elected representatives and senators from the Little Rock School District boundaries will select one (1) philanthropic organization representative serving the Little Rock School District to serve on the LRSD Civic Advisory Committee.

Each principal from the six academically distressed schools in LRSD will meet with Dr. Dexter Suggs, superintendent, at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, February 23, 2015, at the Little Rock School District Administration Building to select two (2) students and two (2) teachers who will represent the six academically distressed schools to serve on the LRSD Civic Advisory Committee.

The final list of twelve (12) committee members will be posted to the LRSD website.

Civic Advisory Committee Roles and Responsibilities

LRSD Civic Advisory Committee

The LRSD Civic Advisory Committee will meet monthly on the third Tuesday of each month from 5:00-6:00 p.m. in the Little Rock School District Administration Building, 810 W. Markham, to review the progress of the LRSD in meeting established goals to be removed from state authority. The LRSD Civic Advisory Committee will make recommendations for communication of data to the general public and stakeholders of the LRSD. Additional electronic meetings may be held at the discretion of the superintendent.

LRSD Superintendent and LRSD Staff

The superintendent and LRSD staff will make presentations of data to the LRSD Civic Advisory Committee for consideration. The LRSD will provide staff support to the committee. A written agenda and minutes of each meeting will be posted monthly on the LRSD website. Transportation of the student committee members will be provided by the district. No stipend, salary, fees, membership, or travel reimbursement will be provided to committee members.

More by Max Brantley

Gov. Asa Hutchinson has responded sharply to the lawsuit challenging the legality of the state's new work requirement for Medicaid coverage and also criticizing the online-only reporting requirement. His statement:

The latest numbers from the Department of Human Services show thousands more people did not meet the reporting requirement on work hours in July to meet Medicaid eligibility standards.

Vincent Tolliver, a candidate for Little Rock, mayor, has written legislators asking the Senate Education Committee to ask Education Commissioner Johnny Key to testify about problems encountered by parents on Monday, the first day of school in the state-run Little Rock School District.

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